Judge Dismisses Run Gum Lawsuit

A U.S. District Court judge in Oregon dismissed an antitrust lawsuit on Wednesday brought by Nick Symmonds’s company Run Gum against USA Track & Field and the U.S. Olympic Committee.

The complaint was filed in January—another step in Symmonds’s ongoing feud with the sport’s governing body over athletes’ rights to wear their sponsors’ logos at meets like the Olympic Trials and the Olympics.

Current rules allow athletes to display only the logo of an approved apparel or equipment company on their uniforms and bodies. Businesses such as Run Gum are neither.

Judge Michael J. McShane concluded in his decision that USATF’s and the USOC’s bans on “allowing athletes to become human billboards at the Trials” is necessary to finance Team USA. He continued that the two agencies are not subject to antitrust liability for the apparel advertising restrictions at issue in the case.

Symmonds, the U.S. 800-meter champion who is currently in China to compete in the two track meets, told Runner’s World in January that it is “absurd” that the rules are still in place.

“They’re grossly anti-competitive and they violate U.S. antitrust law in such an absurd way that I really think this is a no-brainer,” he said.

The judge disagreed, saying that the logo restrictions allow the USOC to generate revenue for the Olympic team. Currently the U.S. team wears Nike-branded apparel. Allowing other companies to advertise on a competitor’s clothing would interfere with the Olympic Committee’s fundraising mission, McShane wrote.

Run Gum did not immediately return a message requesting comment on the lawsuit dismissal. It is unknown if an appeal will be filed.

Earlier this week Symmonds closed an eBay auction in which he took bids for nine inches of advertising space on his shoulder. The winner was John Legere, CEO of T-Mobile, who paid $21,800. Symmonds will be required to cover the T-Mobile logo and others on his arms with tape while competing in July at the Olympic Trials.

A Part of Hearst Digital Media
Runner's World participates in various affiliate marketing programs, which means we may get paid commissions on editorially chosen products purchased through our links to retailer sites.